I am sure that ducks know when it is hunting season. Ok, maybe I’m going a bit far, but they do know when people are a threat. Anytime after the duck hunting season starts to a little bit before it ends, the ducks are especially skittish. But it is still possible to get close if you are careful and use knowledge of the birds. I just had been having a bit of bad luck. Today I started out to try for some ducks again. Before I got to some of the duck habitat, I stopped for an attractive female Red-winged Blackbird that was perching up on some cattails.
Red-winged Blackbird
It was long wait, but in the end I finally had some luck with the ducks. A beautiful male Bufflehead spent some time right in front of me. They can be a hard bird to expose for since you need some sunlight to bring out the iridescence. They also have both a lot of highlight detail in the bright white spots on their head and body as well as detail in the blacks. You need pretty soft light for this. Fortunately conditions were good and the Bufflehead was magnificent.
Bufflehead